Friday, June 22, 2007
Clash of Civilizations: Real or Imagined?
Clash of civilizations: Real or imagined?
Juwono Sudarsono, the Jakarta Post, June, 23, 2007
I have been asked to address the topic presented for this meeting: "Clash of Civilizations: Real or Imagined?" I have come to the conclusion that the clash is both real as well as imagined, simply because "facts", or reality, are often inseparable from perceptions, or the "imagined". The more so because much of the debate has been exacerbated and distorted by the media.
Western media have used such expressions as "Islamic fundamentalism", "Islamic terrorism", "Islamic jihadists" and even "Islamic fascists". Some television and radio stations, as well as trash tabloids, are prone to using these terms. They feed on one another so that "fact" becomes fiction, and fiction "ignites" facts.
The Muslim world as a whole has suffered from this massive media manipulation. It has given rise to many different sets of perceptions about "clashes within civilizations", including among Muslims in the Middle East, Asia and Southeast Asia. You can also say that it is a clash of ideas about civilizations across all continents.
The notion of a "clash of civilizations" was first publicly raised in 1993 in an article written in Foreign Affairs magazine by Professor Samuel Huntington, and it is useful to remind ourselves of the context of when and why the question of a clash of civilizations was brought up.
First, it appeared in the wake of the "victory" of liberal capitalism over communism, symbolized by the unification of the two Germanys in October 1991 and the dismantling of the Soviet Union in December. The 1991 Gulf War over Kuwait added to the sense of western triumphalism. American hegemony was at its peak.
Second, the crises in the Middle East and the rise of militant Islamist movements against Western interests throughout the world in the mid-1980s began to be perceived by many in the West as "radical Islam" supplanting Communism as the principal challenge in the global ideological contest. Bombings against western interests in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Gulf region resulted in the rise of faith-based neo-conservatism.
Thereafter, the events of Sept. 11, 2001, confirmed the notion in the West that there would be a global contest between the liberal capitalist world led by the United States and the Islamic world led by Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda movement.
While there may be superficial truth about this worldwide contest for ideological supremacy, the fact of the matter is that there were even more serious clashes within civilizations, both in "the West" and even more so in the "Muslim world". Within the Western world, there began a series of cleavages between Christian fundamentalists and progressive schools, both in the Protestant as well as Catholic churches, in North America, Europe as well as in Latin America.
In the U.S., the role of the Christian right representing various church denominations became powerful in influencing both domestic and foreign policy debates. From prayer in schools, abortion, gay marriages and stem cell research, to preaching Christian civilization and pushing western-style "democracy" abroad, these self-righteous views influenced the perception that the current American administration has been subtly influenced by the right-wing constituencies.
In Europe, crises of identity among Muslims within each of the European democracies in part have been compounded by worries over illegal immigration.
Contrary to popular opinion both in the West and within the Muslim world itself, there began serious clashes about civilization in the Islamic world itself. While a tiny minority may have been attracted to the notion of a "worldwide caliphate" imbued by Islamic values, as propounded by Osama Bin Laden, there have been different "realities " at the ground level.
Serious differences of the interpretation of Islam in Africa, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia began to proliferate. Differing interpretations of the practical application of Muslim values are present in the Middle East among and within each Arab state, between Arab states and Iran, between the larger Middle East and Turkey, between Muslims in Pakistan and Muslims in India. And indeed, among Muslims within Malaysia and Indonesia.
At the end of the day, it is the clash of local political interests that define and divide the conflict in the Middle East. Much of the root causes of these conflicts ultimately rest on tribal rivalry and clan contests for access to status, group privilege, personal power or a combination of the three.
The Palestine Authority is divided by factionalism between Fatah and Hamas, which, ironically, has little to do with Islamic values. In contemporary Iraq, violent clashes occur between Sunnis and Shiites, as well as among Sunni parochial groups. And then there are the criminals and thugs who profit from incessant chaos. The issue of anti-Americanism is marginal to all of these situations.
Historically, the Muslim world in the Middle East has been marginalized by the structural juxtaposition of three issues:
First, the Palestine-Israel conflict going back to the early 20th century,
Second, the nexus of energy dependence and strategic military projection of the West going back to the 1930s.
Third, the conflicting claims by Islam, Christianity and Judaism over the heritage of the holy sites in the region. There has to date been no international initiative that has been able to sustain the painstaking tribal and clan accords that are imperative to make any progress viable. Thus far, all manner of agreements have unraveled by these micro-dimensions of clashes of civilization.
Indonesia has often been seen as a model "moderate" Muslim country which can play a significant contributing role to the peace process in the Middle East. But we all realize that the realities of the Muslim world in the Middle East are strikingly different from the situation in Southeast Asia.
We must not be too tempted to preach, much less transpose, our version of Islam on the situation in the Arab world in particular and the Middle East in general.
Within Indonesia itself, there is much work to be done in the days, months and years ahead to prevent clashes within our own micro-civilizations at the ground level.
Only then can we be vindicated by our common commitment to not only promote dialogue and cooperation among Indonesians of all faiths, but provide real-world practical solutions on the ground that replenish the true traditions of pluralism, tolerance and openness within the widening embrace of Indonesian-ness. Let us conduct dialogue and work cooperatively. Let us all practice what we preach.
The writer is Indonesia's Defense Minister. This article is based on a presentation given at the launch of the Center for Dialogue and Cooperation among Civilizations, in Jakarta on June 15
Juwono Sudarsono, the Jakarta Post, June, 23, 2007
I have been asked to address the topic presented for this meeting: "Clash of Civilizations: Real or Imagined?" I have come to the conclusion that the clash is both real as well as imagined, simply because "facts", or reality, are often inseparable from perceptions, or the "imagined". The more so because much of the debate has been exacerbated and distorted by the media.
Western media have used such expressions as "Islamic fundamentalism", "Islamic terrorism", "Islamic jihadists" and even "Islamic fascists". Some television and radio stations, as well as trash tabloids, are prone to using these terms. They feed on one another so that "fact" becomes fiction, and fiction "ignites" facts.
The Muslim world as a whole has suffered from this massive media manipulation. It has given rise to many different sets of perceptions about "clashes within civilizations", including among Muslims in the Middle East, Asia and Southeast Asia. You can also say that it is a clash of ideas about civilizations across all continents.
The notion of a "clash of civilizations" was first publicly raised in 1993 in an article written in Foreign Affairs magazine by Professor Samuel Huntington, and it is useful to remind ourselves of the context of when and why the question of a clash of civilizations was brought up.
First, it appeared in the wake of the "victory" of liberal capitalism over communism, symbolized by the unification of the two Germanys in October 1991 and the dismantling of the Soviet Union in December. The 1991 Gulf War over Kuwait added to the sense of western triumphalism. American hegemony was at its peak.
Second, the crises in the Middle East and the rise of militant Islamist movements against Western interests throughout the world in the mid-1980s began to be perceived by many in the West as "radical Islam" supplanting Communism as the principal challenge in the global ideological contest. Bombings against western interests in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Gulf region resulted in the rise of faith-based neo-conservatism.
Thereafter, the events of Sept. 11, 2001, confirmed the notion in the West that there would be a global contest between the liberal capitalist world led by the United States and the Islamic world led by Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda movement.
While there may be superficial truth about this worldwide contest for ideological supremacy, the fact of the matter is that there were even more serious clashes within civilizations, both in "the West" and even more so in the "Muslim world". Within the Western world, there began a series of cleavages between Christian fundamentalists and progressive schools, both in the Protestant as well as Catholic churches, in North America, Europe as well as in Latin America.
In the U.S., the role of the Christian right representing various church denominations became powerful in influencing both domestic and foreign policy debates. From prayer in schools, abortion, gay marriages and stem cell research, to preaching Christian civilization and pushing western-style "democracy" abroad, these self-righteous views influenced the perception that the current American administration has been subtly influenced by the right-wing constituencies.
In Europe, crises of identity among Muslims within each of the European democracies in part have been compounded by worries over illegal immigration.
Contrary to popular opinion both in the West and within the Muslim world itself, there began serious clashes about civilization in the Islamic world itself. While a tiny minority may have been attracted to the notion of a "worldwide caliphate" imbued by Islamic values, as propounded by Osama Bin Laden, there have been different "realities " at the ground level.
Serious differences of the interpretation of Islam in Africa, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia began to proliferate. Differing interpretations of the practical application of Muslim values are present in the Middle East among and within each Arab state, between Arab states and Iran, between the larger Middle East and Turkey, between Muslims in Pakistan and Muslims in India. And indeed, among Muslims within Malaysia and Indonesia.
At the end of the day, it is the clash of local political interests that define and divide the conflict in the Middle East. Much of the root causes of these conflicts ultimately rest on tribal rivalry and clan contests for access to status, group privilege, personal power or a combination of the three.
The Palestine Authority is divided by factionalism between Fatah and Hamas, which, ironically, has little to do with Islamic values. In contemporary Iraq, violent clashes occur between Sunnis and Shiites, as well as among Sunni parochial groups. And then there are the criminals and thugs who profit from incessant chaos. The issue of anti-Americanism is marginal to all of these situations.
Historically, the Muslim world in the Middle East has been marginalized by the structural juxtaposition of three issues:
First, the Palestine-Israel conflict going back to the early 20th century,
Second, the nexus of energy dependence and strategic military projection of the West going back to the 1930s.
Third, the conflicting claims by Islam, Christianity and Judaism over the heritage of the holy sites in the region. There has to date been no international initiative that has been able to sustain the painstaking tribal and clan accords that are imperative to make any progress viable. Thus far, all manner of agreements have unraveled by these micro-dimensions of clashes of civilization.
Indonesia has often been seen as a model "moderate" Muslim country which can play a significant contributing role to the peace process in the Middle East. But we all realize that the realities of the Muslim world in the Middle East are strikingly different from the situation in Southeast Asia.
We must not be too tempted to preach, much less transpose, our version of Islam on the situation in the Arab world in particular and the Middle East in general.
Within Indonesia itself, there is much work to be done in the days, months and years ahead to prevent clashes within our own micro-civilizations at the ground level.
Only then can we be vindicated by our common commitment to not only promote dialogue and cooperation among Indonesians of all faiths, but provide real-world practical solutions on the ground that replenish the true traditions of pluralism, tolerance and openness within the widening embrace of Indonesian-ness. Let us conduct dialogue and work cooperatively. Let us all practice what we preach.
The writer is Indonesia's Defense Minister. This article is based on a presentation given at the launch of the Center for Dialogue and Cooperation among Civilizations, in Jakarta on June 15
Some Pressing Interfaith Issues
Asia-Europe interfaith talks urge new attitude
Ati Nurbaiti, The Jakarta Post, Nanjing, China
Participants in the latest round of interfaith talks in the region have spoken of the need to reach out to all communities across the world.
The Nanjing Statement on Interfaith Dialog issued Thursday stressed "the need to create more possibilities and favorable conditions for deepening interfaith and intercultural dialog, especially at the grassroots level."
Religious leaders and observers had separately raised the urgent need for such dialogs to move beyond government officials, religious leaders and academics, although a number of civil society groups already participate in similar events.
Recent interfaith talks have been held in the Philippines and in New Zealand.
The Nanjing talks from June 19 to 21 were a follow up to similar talks held at the Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Larnaca, Cyprus in January, and earlier in Bali in 2005.
The statement added that the favorable conditions for more dialogs at the grassroots would need at a national level an "environment of understanding and mutual respect in which all people, be they religious or non-religious, shall be living in peace, practice and communicate their faiths and convictions."
A working group on social cohesion had raised the need to also include people who do not adhere to any faith.
The host country China, which is officially communist, claims among its 1.3 billion population 100 million followers of Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Taoism and Islam, its five state-sanctioned faiths.
Although the constitution protects the right to religious beliefs, members of several unrecognized faiths claim to have been harassed. The most known to the outside world, Falun Gong, is banned.
The assistant minister of foreign affairs, Cui Tian Kai, said the government would "seriously and earnestly implement all our commitments enshrined in the statement", in following up the statement's appeal for Asian and European countries to "respect freedom of religion or belief, diversity in social system..."
However, "as to the evil cult which you referred to, that is of course an anti-humanity and anti-social cult and it runs counter to the tenets of all religions."
"And evil cults like this will have to banned in every country," he said.
Among other issues touched on in the statement were the recognition of the migrant communities that had increased ethnic, religious and cultural diversity in Asian and Europe countries.
The statement raised the need to adopt the best policies possible "to help legal migrants while respecting and preserving as much as possible their original faith and cultural traditions so as to promote social cohesion and peaceful co-existence."
Tension between largely Muslim migrant communities and recipient countries such as the United Kingdom and France has particularly drawn attention in the past years.
Government officials from European countries explained their policies in the talks, with tiny Singapore also sharing its policies of ensuring that representatives of all groups including "hard liners" join top-to-bottom intergroup-level dialogs in each community to overcome any misunderstanding.
The talks were attended by representatives of 35 of the 45 country "partners" of ASEM.
Indonesian moderator Din Syamsuddin, leader of the Muhammadiyah Islamic organization, said to be effective interfaith dialogs needed "a new formula, a new approach".
He said his proposals "to include the excluded" posed a dilemma when referring to groups that are considered "hard-line" or "extremist". Attempts to reach out to these groups must be continued in Indonesia, he said.
One of the Indonesian speakers, Komaruddin Hidayat, said a "more personal approach" would be needed regarding "hard-line groups".
"Who really wants to live a life hunted by the police and isolated by society?" he said. Violent religious expressions were far from sanctioned by communities, he said
Ati Nurbaiti, The Jakarta Post, Nanjing, China
Participants in the latest round of interfaith talks in the region have spoken of the need to reach out to all communities across the world.
The Nanjing Statement on Interfaith Dialog issued Thursday stressed "the need to create more possibilities and favorable conditions for deepening interfaith and intercultural dialog, especially at the grassroots level."
Religious leaders and observers had separately raised the urgent need for such dialogs to move beyond government officials, religious leaders and academics, although a number of civil society groups already participate in similar events.
Recent interfaith talks have been held in the Philippines and in New Zealand.
The Nanjing talks from June 19 to 21 were a follow up to similar talks held at the Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Larnaca, Cyprus in January, and earlier in Bali in 2005.
The statement added that the favorable conditions for more dialogs at the grassroots would need at a national level an "environment of understanding and mutual respect in which all people, be they religious or non-religious, shall be living in peace, practice and communicate their faiths and convictions."
A working group on social cohesion had raised the need to also include people who do not adhere to any faith.
The host country China, which is officially communist, claims among its 1.3 billion population 100 million followers of Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Taoism and Islam, its five state-sanctioned faiths.
Although the constitution protects the right to religious beliefs, members of several unrecognized faiths claim to have been harassed. The most known to the outside world, Falun Gong, is banned.
The assistant minister of foreign affairs, Cui Tian Kai, said the government would "seriously and earnestly implement all our commitments enshrined in the statement", in following up the statement's appeal for Asian and European countries to "respect freedom of religion or belief, diversity in social system..."
However, "as to the evil cult which you referred to, that is of course an anti-humanity and anti-social cult and it runs counter to the tenets of all religions."
"And evil cults like this will have to banned in every country," he said.
Among other issues touched on in the statement were the recognition of the migrant communities that had increased ethnic, religious and cultural diversity in Asian and Europe countries.
The statement raised the need to adopt the best policies possible "to help legal migrants while respecting and preserving as much as possible their original faith and cultural traditions so as to promote social cohesion and peaceful co-existence."
Tension between largely Muslim migrant communities and recipient countries such as the United Kingdom and France has particularly drawn attention in the past years.
Government officials from European countries explained their policies in the talks, with tiny Singapore also sharing its policies of ensuring that representatives of all groups including "hard liners" join top-to-bottom intergroup-level dialogs in each community to overcome any misunderstanding.
The talks were attended by representatives of 35 of the 45 country "partners" of ASEM.
Indonesian moderator Din Syamsuddin, leader of the Muhammadiyah Islamic organization, said to be effective interfaith dialogs needed "a new formula, a new approach".
He said his proposals "to include the excluded" posed a dilemma when referring to groups that are considered "hard-line" or "extremist". Attempts to reach out to these groups must be continued in Indonesia, he said.
One of the Indonesian speakers, Komaruddin Hidayat, said a "more personal approach" would be needed regarding "hard-line groups".
"Who really wants to live a life hunted by the police and isolated by society?" he said. Violent religious expressions were far from sanctioned by communities, he said
Saturday, June 09, 2007
Being Instructor at Islam and Southeast Asia Workshop
http://www.punahou.edu/page.cfm?p=560
Global Village Initiative
A Partnership with the Department of Education, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and the Honolulu Academy of Arts
Funded by the Freeman Foundation
2007-2008 Theme: Islam and Southeast Asia
We look forward to Year II of the Global Village Initiative.
Guided by Dr. Barbara Andaya, Director of Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Hawai`i, our Global Village Year II will include:
Annual June Workshop, June 12 - 16, 2007
Four Professional Development Workshops
June Workshop
This one-week workshop will provide rich content on Islam including an historical understanding (spread of Islam, key figures, major belief and value systems), Islam and economic networks, cultural and art traditions, impact of colonialism on the Islamic world, modern Islam in response to internationalism, and human rights issues and what does it mean to be Muslim? We will explore the Islamic diaspora to include Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, and China.The workshop will be led by Muhamad Ali, doctoral candidate at the University of Hawaii in the Department of History. Born in Indonesia, Muhamad Ali attended Islamic schools his entire life. Before his graduate studies at the University of Hawaii and the East-West Center, he was an Assistant Lecturer in the Faculty of Religious Thought at Syarif Hidayattulah State Islamic University in Jakarta.Joining the teaching faculty will be Amy Landau, Curator for Shangri-La, the Honolulu home of Doris Duke which houses an impressive collection of Islamic art.The one-week workshop will also feature a teacher excursion to Shangri-La and the viewing of the Malaysian film, Sepet, an award winning love story about a Chinese boy and a Malay Muslim girl separated by religious and racial difference.
Download a pdf file of the Workshop Syllabus
Workshop Outcomes
Teachers will work collaboratively to co-create statewide model curriculum. Rubrics will be developed to assess teacher learning before and after workshop.
Extended Learning Opportunities
Four Professional Development workshops will focus on writing curriculum with DOE master teachers and on rubrics for assessment of student learning:
September 22, 2007December 8, 2007March 7, 2008May 3, 2008
PD 3-credit option;
School visits to the Honolulu Academy of Arts to view Islamic art galleries;
Student art work created as an outcome of the Global Village Initiative exhibited at the Honolulu Academy of Arts
Possible cultural performances
Global Village Initiative
A Partnership with the Department of Education, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and the Honolulu Academy of Arts
Funded by the Freeman Foundation
2007-2008 Theme: Islam and Southeast Asia
We look forward to Year II of the Global Village Initiative.
Guided by Dr. Barbara Andaya, Director of Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Hawai`i, our Global Village Year II will include:
Annual June Workshop, June 12 - 16, 2007
Four Professional Development Workshops
June Workshop
This one-week workshop will provide rich content on Islam including an historical understanding (spread of Islam, key figures, major belief and value systems), Islam and economic networks, cultural and art traditions, impact of colonialism on the Islamic world, modern Islam in response to internationalism, and human rights issues and what does it mean to be Muslim? We will explore the Islamic diaspora to include Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, and China.The workshop will be led by Muhamad Ali, doctoral candidate at the University of Hawaii in the Department of History. Born in Indonesia, Muhamad Ali attended Islamic schools his entire life. Before his graduate studies at the University of Hawaii and the East-West Center, he was an Assistant Lecturer in the Faculty of Religious Thought at Syarif Hidayattulah State Islamic University in Jakarta.Joining the teaching faculty will be Amy Landau, Curator for Shangri-La, the Honolulu home of Doris Duke which houses an impressive collection of Islamic art.The one-week workshop will also feature a teacher excursion to Shangri-La and the viewing of the Malaysian film, Sepet, an award winning love story about a Chinese boy and a Malay Muslim girl separated by religious and racial difference.
Download a pdf file of the Workshop Syllabus
Workshop Outcomes
Teachers will work collaboratively to co-create statewide model curriculum. Rubrics will be developed to assess teacher learning before and after workshop.
Extended Learning Opportunities
Four Professional Development workshops will focus on writing curriculum with DOE master teachers and on rubrics for assessment of student learning:
September 22, 2007December 8, 2007March 7, 2008May 3, 2008
PD 3-credit option;
School visits to the Honolulu Academy of Arts to view Islamic art galleries;
Student art work created as an outcome of the Global Village Initiative exhibited at the Honolulu Academy of Arts
Possible cultural performances
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Friday, May 25, 2007
Readers' Comments on My Article "Merry Xmas from Muslims"
Dear Mr. Mohamad Ali,
My name is Franky Wibowo, lives in Jakarta, I have read your article in The Jakarta Post on Dec 24, 2002 in page 7 with title: Merry Xmas from Muslims: A Lesson in tolerance. Your article is the best writing that I have ever read about religious tolerance between Islam and Christianity, it looks like that you are overwhelming the essential meaning of tolerance.
Anyway, I myself is a Christian and also a minority ethnic in Indonesia, let say: chinese. I am glad that there are good technocrats like you, Abdulrachman Wahid, Azyumardi, Ulil, etc in muslim society, even the numbers are very few, at least compare with the total muslim population in Indonesia. It's a pity that the good technocrats and also the moderate muslim like you are not huge number and I would say that you like ministers in the king's palace who never down-earthed in the common layer. The common layer is consisting of the people who are un-educated and know very little about religious doctrine and poverty overwhelms them forever. They have been easily guided and misused by the other layer for political events and also always sacrifices minority ethnic for blaming as infidel and we must accept that treatment as a second class in Indonesian society. There is a circle of racial riots in Indonesia, maybe every 30 years or faster. Besides that, mass media accounted that so many demolished attempting occurred to the churches in 1999 and strings of church bombing in 2000.
If you were me, what should you feel? Scary for being a minority of the minorities in Indonesia? I don't know How long this unjust treatment always to be done with us. I myself have been discouraging to live any longer in Indonesia since May 1998. I think you must know the phenomenon in our society, that is many of my colleagues now are seeking for a permanent resident in many countries like: Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, United States of America and Canada. Everyone gets approval from embassy, is very happy, happier than receiving a new born baby. Do you know how much money they must pay the lawyer off for permanent resident's approval? For Singapore, they must pay off S$ 1,000.- for Canada, US$ 5,000 all for 1 family. What do you think? Is it a normal phenomenon? Maybe it is a trend, the fact is, 3 out of 5 of my colleagues have their own permanent residency (PR). PR is one of another luxury goods for executive officer in Chinese Indonesia community. I think everyone gets sick and tired. The Braindrain is coming!
It's your duty to give a wake up call for moderate muslim and give your article that you have written in The Jakarta Post to common layer in Indonesia. If your success comes, I have no longer to live in another country, will be?
Good Luck for your duty, Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri, Mohon Maaf Lahir dan Batin. Good luck for your study in USA
Sincerely yours,
Franky, also U.S. green card holder
==========
Assalamu'alaikum Wr Wb
Dear Brother Muhammad Ali,I read your article "Merry Xmas from Muslims: A lesson in tolerance" printed in the Jakarta Post and liked it very much.As such, I am distributing it in islaminst yahoogroups mailing list.I have been contacted by scholars such as Dr Giora Eliraz (Visiting Fellow in the Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University) and Dr Reuven Paz (The International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism) who are interested in "Islam in Indonesia". I'll appreciate it very much if you could add me to your list of recipients. Thank you.WassalamMoorshidee B A Kassim
Dear Mr. Ali,Merry Christmas to you and your family! I salute your rather bold but honest comments exhorting your fellowMuslim believers about what you think is a more "inclusive" attitudetowards the celebration of Christmas (The Jakarta Post, 12/26/02).People who really understands the agape love that only comes from theAlmighty could say such unselfish concern for his fellow men.Unfortunately, there are still so many who are blinded by their man-made doctrines that continuesly drive our world into perdition. I send you a news clipping that mentions exactly our concerns whichprobably is one that puts us asunder. Again, Merry Christmas! I wish you success in your endeavour. E. GarmaWheaton, IL
=========
December 26, 2002Dear Muhamad,Well said - I read with great interest your essay and enjoyed you perspective and insight. I read the article in the December 24, 2002 edition of "The Jakarta Post".All too often the history and interweaving of Jewish, Muslim and Christian religions and philosophies are neglected. I especially enjoyed your insights into specific instances in the Koran, or other works, where relationships with Christians or Jews were mentioned.I am a Psychological Anthropologist and at the moment I am living in the village of Candidasa on the south east coast of the island of Bali. I work as a college professor in San Francisco, California.If we could encourage more persons to understand the dynamics of our shared prophets and our relating to the same common "book" I think alot of the animosity between peoples would go away.Sometimes I fear the process of moving from a religion of a "life style" philosophical, to a action based western "noun" or thing based world, makes us less understanding about the common thread of life we live as a community and gets us on a competitive bandwagon of a "movement" that we must "win".Instead of relationship we have judgment, separation and movement to chaos. Without the union of atonement (at one ment) we tend to scatter as fish in a school or birds in the sky as they are scared.If there is a book you know that especially highlights the occurrences you have given in you essay I would like to know of it. If there is not such a book I think it would be a great asset to write such a book. Give the people of the world religions some foundation to view their relationship with others in a common context. I would be happy to help facilitate such an undertaking.Terryl Kistler
My name is Franky Wibowo, lives in Jakarta, I have read your article in The Jakarta Post on Dec 24, 2002 in page 7 with title: Merry Xmas from Muslims: A Lesson in tolerance. Your article is the best writing that I have ever read about religious tolerance between Islam and Christianity, it looks like that you are overwhelming the essential meaning of tolerance.
Anyway, I myself is a Christian and also a minority ethnic in Indonesia, let say: chinese. I am glad that there are good technocrats like you, Abdulrachman Wahid, Azyumardi, Ulil, etc in muslim society, even the numbers are very few, at least compare with the total muslim population in Indonesia. It's a pity that the good technocrats and also the moderate muslim like you are not huge number and I would say that you like ministers in the king's palace who never down-earthed in the common layer. The common layer is consisting of the people who are un-educated and know very little about religious doctrine and poverty overwhelms them forever. They have been easily guided and misused by the other layer for political events and also always sacrifices minority ethnic for blaming as infidel and we must accept that treatment as a second class in Indonesian society. There is a circle of racial riots in Indonesia, maybe every 30 years or faster. Besides that, mass media accounted that so many demolished attempting occurred to the churches in 1999 and strings of church bombing in 2000.
If you were me, what should you feel? Scary for being a minority of the minorities in Indonesia? I don't know How long this unjust treatment always to be done with us. I myself have been discouraging to live any longer in Indonesia since May 1998. I think you must know the phenomenon in our society, that is many of my colleagues now are seeking for a permanent resident in many countries like: Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, United States of America and Canada. Everyone gets approval from embassy, is very happy, happier than receiving a new born baby. Do you know how much money they must pay the lawyer off for permanent resident's approval? For Singapore, they must pay off S$ 1,000.- for Canada, US$ 5,000 all for 1 family. What do you think? Is it a normal phenomenon? Maybe it is a trend, the fact is, 3 out of 5 of my colleagues have their own permanent residency (PR). PR is one of another luxury goods for executive officer in Chinese Indonesia community. I think everyone gets sick and tired. The Braindrain is coming!
It's your duty to give a wake up call for moderate muslim and give your article that you have written in The Jakarta Post to common layer in Indonesia. If your success comes, I have no longer to live in another country, will be?
Good Luck for your duty, Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri, Mohon Maaf Lahir dan Batin. Good luck for your study in USA
Sincerely yours,
Franky, also U.S. green card holder
==========
Assalamu'alaikum Wr Wb
Dear Brother Muhammad Ali,I read your article "Merry Xmas from Muslims: A lesson in tolerance" printed in the Jakarta Post and liked it very much.As such, I am distributing it in islaminst yahoogroups mailing list.I have been contacted by scholars such as Dr Giora Eliraz (Visiting Fellow in the Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University) and Dr Reuven Paz (The International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism) who are interested in "Islam in Indonesia". I'll appreciate it very much if you could add me to your list of recipients. Thank you.WassalamMoorshidee B A Kassim
Dear Mr. Ali,Merry Christmas to you and your family! I salute your rather bold but honest comments exhorting your fellowMuslim believers about what you think is a more "inclusive" attitudetowards the celebration of Christmas (The Jakarta Post, 12/26/02).People who really understands the agape love that only comes from theAlmighty could say such unselfish concern for his fellow men.Unfortunately, there are still so many who are blinded by their man-made doctrines that continuesly drive our world into perdition. I send you a news clipping that mentions exactly our concerns whichprobably is one that puts us asunder. Again, Merry Christmas! I wish you success in your endeavour. E. GarmaWheaton, IL
=========
December 26, 2002Dear Muhamad,Well said - I read with great interest your essay and enjoyed you perspective and insight. I read the article in the December 24, 2002 edition of "The Jakarta Post".All too often the history and interweaving of Jewish, Muslim and Christian religions and philosophies are neglected. I especially enjoyed your insights into specific instances in the Koran, or other works, where relationships with Christians or Jews were mentioned.I am a Psychological Anthropologist and at the moment I am living in the village of Candidasa on the south east coast of the island of Bali. I work as a college professor in San Francisco, California.If we could encourage more persons to understand the dynamics of our shared prophets and our relating to the same common "book" I think alot of the animosity between peoples would go away.Sometimes I fear the process of moving from a religion of a "life style" philosophical, to a action based western "noun" or thing based world, makes us less understanding about the common thread of life we live as a community and gets us on a competitive bandwagon of a "movement" that we must "win".Instead of relationship we have judgment, separation and movement to chaos. Without the union of atonement (at one ment) we tend to scatter as fish in a school or birds in the sky as they are scared.If there is a book you know that especially highlights the occurrences you have given in you essay I would like to know of it. If there is not such a book I think it would be a great asset to write such a book. Give the people of the world religions some foundation to view their relationship with others in a common context. I would be happy to help facilitate such an undertaking.Terryl Kistler
Readers' Comments on My Article "Promoting Religious Pluralism"
Dear Muhamad --Im' a reporter for the Christian Science Monitor (www.csmonitor.com) and ambased in Jakarta. I read your op-ed with great interest and would like totalk with you, particularly your comments about the denial of an historicalframe of reference for reading the Quran.I'm currently working on a story that is simple in design, difficult inexecution, that asks the following two questions: 1. How many Salafypesantren are there in Indonesia now? 2. Has the number grown? 3. Are suchschools a threat to Indonesia's own Moslem traditions.If you're interested in chatting, let me know when and at what number i cancall you. Best regards, Dan
Hi,
As a Christian living in Australia I applaud your
recent enlightning article in the Jakarta Post.com
about promoting religious pluralism.
My mother, being Indonesian, when we lived in
Hawaii in the 1960's - 70s, used to invite to our
humble house many of the Indonesian students
at the East West Centre for traditional ryst tafel.
She taught me at a very young age the importance
of tolerance. God blessed her with a long and healthy
life, she is now 99, retired in Holland.
The recent tradegy in Bali has hit my Australian
friends very hard, since many of the victims
had very strong local community ties.
Fortunately, because of the strong insistence
of our government and religious leaders, this
has not resulted in revenge attacks here, other
than some minor shows of intolerance by what
I can say are people ignorant of any religion.
I wish you all the best with your endeavours.
Sieuwert Oost
Webmaster
www.sydney-australia.net
Bapak Muhamad Ali yang terhormat,Perbolehkan saya memperkenalkan diri. Nama saya Ismartono, seorang romokatolik, bekerja pada Komisi Hubungan Antaragama dan Kepercayaan KonferensiWaligereja Indonesia (Komisi HAK-KWI), Jl. Cut Mutiah 10 Jakarta 10340.Saya membaca tulisan Bapak yang berjudul "Promoting religious pluralism".dalam Jakarta Post. Saya senang membaca tulisan itu dan melalui e-mail inisaya mau mengucapkan terima kasih.Akhirnya perbolehkan juga saya mengucapkan Selamat Hari Raya IDUL FITRI 1Syawal 1423 H/2002 M.Dalam mengucapkan selamat ini, saya juga menggabungkan diri dengan ucapan dari Gereja katolik di mana saya berada. Maka bersama ini,saya sampaikanucapan selamat dari Vatikan yang ditandatangangi oleh Uskup Agung MichaelL. Fitzgerald, Ketua Dewan (sejenis Komisi HAK di sana).Rasanya terdapat sebuah semangat pluralisme yang sama yangmelatarbelakanginya. Sekali lagi terima kasih.Teriring salam dan hormat saya,I. Ismartono, SJ
Selamat Idul Fitri, 1 Syawal 1421H,I have read your brief promoting religious pluralism dated December 7,2002 issued by the Jakarta Post. We wish to have in our country a numberof wisemen as you do in order to lead all the believers aspeciallly forour brothers and sisters who have been so called Muslimin and Muslimat.By implementing what you have written in your subject "Promotingreligious pluralism" will lead the believers to the staright way towardsthe salvation.I personally believe that such way each believer will skip out ofmisunderstanding among the religious' believers.Wishing you will be successfully in pursuing your PhD.Wassalam,Jamaluddin Siregar
Halo Pak Muhamad
I read your article in The Jakarta Post,it was nice.I have a question;does it say in the Holy Koran that a Christian/Catholic,Hindu,etc,etc, man can't marry a Muslim woman?The head of KMNU is also a smart and very deep person like you.We need to hear more people like you two,we hear more words from fundamentalists and people like your Vice President,and no words from your President hear in America.You now know and see the news we get.People here see those demos and think people from Indonesia hate them(U.S.A. and the West).But people like me know that in your country I can pay for a demo!As a Black American living in your country,I had friends that were very poor and very rich.They were all the same to me.The people of Pencak Silat thought like you also,they are and will always be my big family.One more thing,what happened to Pak Amien?He has changed very much.Yah,I can understand that it can and is hard to trust the U.S.A.,but he is paranoid.It could be all about 2004,the elections.I guess that's politics.It's the same here,and he did go to school here for a while.How do you like Hawaii?Now that last question was stupid,I know you like it allot.You picked the right place to go to school.Very peaceful and serene.Keep up the good work and study hard!God be with you bro!
See ya!!
Hi,
As a Christian living in Australia I applaud your
recent enlightning article in the Jakarta Post.com
about promoting religious pluralism.
My mother, being Indonesian, when we lived in
Hawaii in the 1960's - 70s, used to invite to our
humble house many of the Indonesian students
at the East West Centre for traditional ryst tafel.
She taught me at a very young age the importance
of tolerance. God blessed her with a long and healthy
life, she is now 99, retired in Holland.
The recent tradegy in Bali has hit my Australian
friends very hard, since many of the victims
had very strong local community ties.
Fortunately, because of the strong insistence
of our government and religious leaders, this
has not resulted in revenge attacks here, other
than some minor shows of intolerance by what
I can say are people ignorant of any religion.
I wish you all the best with your endeavours.
Sieuwert Oost
Webmaster
www.sydney-australia.net
Bapak Muhamad Ali yang terhormat,Perbolehkan saya memperkenalkan diri. Nama saya Ismartono, seorang romokatolik, bekerja pada Komisi Hubungan Antaragama dan Kepercayaan KonferensiWaligereja Indonesia (Komisi HAK-KWI), Jl. Cut Mutiah 10 Jakarta 10340.Saya membaca tulisan Bapak yang berjudul "Promoting religious pluralism".dalam Jakarta Post. Saya senang membaca tulisan itu dan melalui e-mail inisaya mau mengucapkan terima kasih.Akhirnya perbolehkan juga saya mengucapkan Selamat Hari Raya IDUL FITRI 1Syawal 1423 H/2002 M.Dalam mengucapkan selamat ini, saya juga menggabungkan diri dengan ucapan dari Gereja katolik di mana saya berada. Maka bersama ini,saya sampaikanucapan selamat dari Vatikan yang ditandatangangi oleh Uskup Agung MichaelL. Fitzgerald, Ketua Dewan (sejenis Komisi HAK di sana).Rasanya terdapat sebuah semangat pluralisme yang sama yangmelatarbelakanginya. Sekali lagi terima kasih.Teriring salam dan hormat saya,I. Ismartono, SJ
Selamat Idul Fitri, 1 Syawal 1421H,I have read your brief promoting religious pluralism dated December 7,2002 issued by the Jakarta Post. We wish to have in our country a numberof wisemen as you do in order to lead all the believers aspeciallly forour brothers and sisters who have been so called Muslimin and Muslimat.By implementing what you have written in your subject "Promotingreligious pluralism" will lead the believers to the staright way towardsthe salvation.I personally believe that such way each believer will skip out ofmisunderstanding among the religious' believers.Wishing you will be successfully in pursuing your PhD.Wassalam,Jamaluddin Siregar
Halo Pak Muhamad
I read your article in The Jakarta Post,it was nice.I have a question;does it say in the Holy Koran that a Christian/Catholic,Hindu,etc,etc, man can't marry a Muslim woman?The head of KMNU is also a smart and very deep person like you.We need to hear more people like you two,we hear more words from fundamentalists and people like your Vice President,and no words from your President hear in America.You now know and see the news we get.People here see those demos and think people from Indonesia hate them(U.S.A. and the West).But people like me know that in your country I can pay for a demo!As a Black American living in your country,I had friends that were very poor and very rich.They were all the same to me.The people of Pencak Silat thought like you also,they are and will always be my big family.One more thing,what happened to Pak Amien?He has changed very much.Yah,I can understand that it can and is hard to trust the U.S.A.,but he is paranoid.It could be all about 2004,the elections.I guess that's politics.It's the same here,and he did go to school here for a while.How do you like Hawaii?Now that last question was stupid,I know you like it allot.You picked the right place to go to school.Very peaceful and serene.Keep up the good work and study hard!God be with you bro!
See ya!!
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Some hope in the Middle East Peace Process
from the May 16, 2007 edition - http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0516/p07s02-wome.html
Israel shows new openness to Saudi peace plan
In Jordan, the Israeli prime minister said he was ready to discuss the Arab Peace Initiative with Mideast neighbors
By Ilene R. Prusher Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
PETRA, JORDAN
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed increased interest Tuesday in discussing a Saudi-authored initiative for reaching a comprehensive Middle East peace, inviting the leaders of Arab countries to come to Israel to talk more seriously about the proposal and alternatively offering his own willingness to meet them in any of theirs.
Mr. Olmert's statement of openness to the multinational Arab initiative came in response to pointed questions posed by author Elie Wiesel at a conference in Petra, Jordan, aimed at bringing together Nobel Prize winners and young peace activists in search of new salutations to the region's troubles. And although the meeting, now in its third year, is not usually not a headline-grabber, a flurry of diplomatic activity surrounding the statement suggests that at least some of the region's leaders may be getting a second wind for giving peace talks a fresh chance.
"We heard about the Arab Peace Initiative, and we say come and present it to us. You want to talk to us about it; we are ready to sit down and talk about it carefully," Olmert said. If invited elsewhere to discuss it, he said, "I'm ready to come."
Olmert also met with Jordanian King Abdullah II Tuesday in the port city of Aqaba to have discussions away from the current limelight in Petra, which boasts a complex of ancient Nabatean remains and a plethora of modern hotels. The two did not speak to the press, which has been full of speculative reports about a new initiative afoot, being proposed or at least promoted by the Bush administration.
However, according to the Associated Press, King Abdullah told Olmert during their meeting that Israel first had to take concrete steps to improve relations with the Palestinians. The king stressed that reports of new Israeli settlements and the expansion of existing ones stand in contradiction to Israel's quest for peace, said Amjad Adayleh, spokesman for the Jordanian Royal Palace.
Returning from a two-day trip to Iraq, Vice President Dick Cheney met with the Jordanian king, and told reporters during his stopover in Shannon, Ireland, that the two had discussed the king's sense of urgency that something be done to reverse the stagnation in the peace process, which has largely been frozen since the September 2000 outbreak of the Al Aqsa intifada.
In recent days, Palestinian newspapers have carried reports that a proposal kicking around for many years has resurfaced: the creation of a Palestinian-Jordanian confederation as an answer to the difficulties of creating an independent, viable Palestinian state.
King Abdullah was due to meet Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, known as Abu Mazen, in Ramallah on Sunday, but canceled at the last minute due to inclement weather.
Any signs of life in a peace process come at a particularly historic moment on the calendars of the region.
Israelis are marking Jerusalem Day, celebrating 40 years of what is officially considered to be the reunification of Jerusalem, including the predominantly Arab parts that were part of Jordan until June 1967. Palestinians, for whom East Jerusalem is an occupied territory, held solemn memorials to mark the day of al Nakba, or the Catastrophe, the term used in the Arab world in reference to Israel's creation in 1948.
The complications surrounding any new drive for returning to substantive peace talks worsened Tuesday in Gaza when at least nine members of a Fatah security force were killed in an attack that Fatah blamed on Hamas.
Internal fighting between the two main Palestinian factions has worsened in recent days despite repeated efforts to reach a sustainable truce. On Monday, the Palestinian Authority's interior minister, Hani Qawasmi, resigned, saying that he was fed up with attempts to bring rival security forces to operate under a joint command.
At the conference in Jordan, Yasser Abed Rabbo, the secretary general of Fatah, the mainstream faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), suggested that all parties "stop making excuses" about not having an appropriate peace partner.
"We have an historic opportunity, and we can find all kinds of excuses to miss it. We have an Arab Peace Initiative, and it's a unanimous decision to make peace, a long and lasting peace normalizing relations with Israel, if Israel will agree to withdraw from the Arab occupied territories," Mr. Abed Rabbo said.
He added that after many years of inaction, Palestinians see a renewed push toward "exploring the political horizon" – a catchphrase used by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on her last visit to the region – and that this was another way of referring to the final status talks Israelis and Palestinians were meant to complete seven years ago.
The issues in the talks included solving thorny issues such as Palestinian refugees, borders between Israel and the future Palestinian state, the status of Jerusalem, and water, to name a few.
While these talks should happen under an international umbrella, core issues must be decided by Israelis and Palestinians alone, Abed Rabbo said, evincing concerns that Palestinian decision-making could be overtaken by Arab countries dominant in the Saudi-authored initiative.
"Anyone who thinks that the Arab initiative can replace negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians is dreaming, and it's a bad dream," he said. "The Arabs will not replace the Palestinians ... in making difficult decisions."
Shimon Peres, the vice premier in Olmert's government, lamented that most Palestinians' views do not appear to be in line with those of President Abbas, a moderate with a tenuous hold on authority in the Palestinian territories. "I wish that the policies of Abbas [were] the policies of the Palestinians," Peres said. "Then we [would] have peace in 24 hours."
Israel shows new openness to Saudi peace plan
In Jordan, the Israeli prime minister said he was ready to discuss the Arab Peace Initiative with Mideast neighbors
By Ilene R. Prusher Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
PETRA, JORDAN
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed increased interest Tuesday in discussing a Saudi-authored initiative for reaching a comprehensive Middle East peace, inviting the leaders of Arab countries to come to Israel to talk more seriously about the proposal and alternatively offering his own willingness to meet them in any of theirs.
Mr. Olmert's statement of openness to the multinational Arab initiative came in response to pointed questions posed by author Elie Wiesel at a conference in Petra, Jordan, aimed at bringing together Nobel Prize winners and young peace activists in search of new salutations to the region's troubles. And although the meeting, now in its third year, is not usually not a headline-grabber, a flurry of diplomatic activity surrounding the statement suggests that at least some of the region's leaders may be getting a second wind for giving peace talks a fresh chance.
"We heard about the Arab Peace Initiative, and we say come and present it to us. You want to talk to us about it; we are ready to sit down and talk about it carefully," Olmert said. If invited elsewhere to discuss it, he said, "I'm ready to come."
Olmert also met with Jordanian King Abdullah II Tuesday in the port city of Aqaba to have discussions away from the current limelight in Petra, which boasts a complex of ancient Nabatean remains and a plethora of modern hotels. The two did not speak to the press, which has been full of speculative reports about a new initiative afoot, being proposed or at least promoted by the Bush administration.
However, according to the Associated Press, King Abdullah told Olmert during their meeting that Israel first had to take concrete steps to improve relations with the Palestinians. The king stressed that reports of new Israeli settlements and the expansion of existing ones stand in contradiction to Israel's quest for peace, said Amjad Adayleh, spokesman for the Jordanian Royal Palace.
Returning from a two-day trip to Iraq, Vice President Dick Cheney met with the Jordanian king, and told reporters during his stopover in Shannon, Ireland, that the two had discussed the king's sense of urgency that something be done to reverse the stagnation in the peace process, which has largely been frozen since the September 2000 outbreak of the Al Aqsa intifada.
In recent days, Palestinian newspapers have carried reports that a proposal kicking around for many years has resurfaced: the creation of a Palestinian-Jordanian confederation as an answer to the difficulties of creating an independent, viable Palestinian state.
King Abdullah was due to meet Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, known as Abu Mazen, in Ramallah on Sunday, but canceled at the last minute due to inclement weather.
Any signs of life in a peace process come at a particularly historic moment on the calendars of the region.
Israelis are marking Jerusalem Day, celebrating 40 years of what is officially considered to be the reunification of Jerusalem, including the predominantly Arab parts that were part of Jordan until June 1967. Palestinians, for whom East Jerusalem is an occupied territory, held solemn memorials to mark the day of al Nakba, or the Catastrophe, the term used in the Arab world in reference to Israel's creation in 1948.
The complications surrounding any new drive for returning to substantive peace talks worsened Tuesday in Gaza when at least nine members of a Fatah security force were killed in an attack that Fatah blamed on Hamas.
Internal fighting between the two main Palestinian factions has worsened in recent days despite repeated efforts to reach a sustainable truce. On Monday, the Palestinian Authority's interior minister, Hani Qawasmi, resigned, saying that he was fed up with attempts to bring rival security forces to operate under a joint command.
At the conference in Jordan, Yasser Abed Rabbo, the secretary general of Fatah, the mainstream faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), suggested that all parties "stop making excuses" about not having an appropriate peace partner.
"We have an historic opportunity, and we can find all kinds of excuses to miss it. We have an Arab Peace Initiative, and it's a unanimous decision to make peace, a long and lasting peace normalizing relations with Israel, if Israel will agree to withdraw from the Arab occupied territories," Mr. Abed Rabbo said.
He added that after many years of inaction, Palestinians see a renewed push toward "exploring the political horizon" – a catchphrase used by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on her last visit to the region – and that this was another way of referring to the final status talks Israelis and Palestinians were meant to complete seven years ago.
The issues in the talks included solving thorny issues such as Palestinian refugees, borders between Israel and the future Palestinian state, the status of Jerusalem, and water, to name a few.
While these talks should happen under an international umbrella, core issues must be decided by Israelis and Palestinians alone, Abed Rabbo said, evincing concerns that Palestinian decision-making could be overtaken by Arab countries dominant in the Saudi-authored initiative.
"Anyone who thinks that the Arab initiative can replace negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians is dreaming, and it's a bad dream," he said. "The Arabs will not replace the Palestinians ... in making difficult decisions."
Shimon Peres, the vice premier in Olmert's government, lamented that most Palestinians' views do not appear to be in line with those of President Abbas, a moderate with a tenuous hold on authority in the Palestinian territories. "I wish that the policies of Abbas [were] the policies of the Palestinians," Peres said. "Then we [would] have peace in 24 hours."
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Clerics versus Politicians
'We trust clerics more than SBY'
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta (May 15, 2007)
Politicians have never been regarded as the most popular of people, and a recent leadership survey by the Islamic and Societal Research Center (PPIM) would seem to suggest that nothing has changed.
The survey, which ran from January through March this year, revealed that Indonesians trusted their religious leaders more than any other individual or institution, including the President.
"Our survey shows that 41 percent of respondents say that they trust the country's religious leaders, while an equal 22 percent of them lay their trust with the President and the Indonesian military," PPIM executive chairman Jajat Burhanuddin told a media conference, as quoted by detik.com news portal.
"Another 16 percent say they can trust the police institution, and an equal 11 percent trust the People's Consultative Assembly and the House of Representatives. And only 8 percent of the respondents said they trust the political parties," he added.
The survey questioned 200 respondents between 16 and 70 years of age. Some 42 percent of them lived in the cities, and the remaining 58 percent in villages.
Jajat said the survey showed that religious factors played a more significant role than politics.
Prominent Muslim scholar Azyumardi Azra said the survey also pinpointed the fact that the state institution was weaker than religious ones. "Our state institution is on a declining trend."
He said the National Police's inability to handle the mass riots in 1998 was a symptom of this.
"The police did not have the capacity to deal with the riots, while politicians could not do anything to put an end to them," Azyumardi, former rector of the Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, said.
He suggested that Pancasila, the national ideology, needed to be revived.
"We do not need to change the ideology, but give Pancasila a greater role in solving the problems of the nation," he said, in reference to another aspect of the survey which revealed that Pancasila remains the preferred national ideology.
Jajat said the survey showed that after the fall of president Soeharto people still preferred Pancasila to Islamic sharia, despite the fact that over 80 percent of the country's 220 million people are Muslims.
"Only 22.8 percent of the respondents want Islamic sharia as the state's ideology... The much greater remaining percentage chose Pancasila," Jajat said.
He said respondents had put religion as the most important factor in determining the identity of the nation, with some 41.3 percent of them supporting the idea. Another 24.6 percent chose nationhood as the national identity, while the rest chose occupation, ethnicity, social status and political party membership as their identity.
The survey also showed that 63.9 percent of the respondents agreed on equal distribution of power between Jakarta and the regional administrations nationwide, another 22.8 percent wanted Jakarta to take control of most of the country's government affairs, another 8.3 percent opted for a federation system, 0.8 percent chose to separate from Indonesia and 14.1 percent abstained
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta (May 15, 2007)
Politicians have never been regarded as the most popular of people, and a recent leadership survey by the Islamic and Societal Research Center (PPIM) would seem to suggest that nothing has changed.
The survey, which ran from January through March this year, revealed that Indonesians trusted their religious leaders more than any other individual or institution, including the President.
"Our survey shows that 41 percent of respondents say that they trust the country's religious leaders, while an equal 22 percent of them lay their trust with the President and the Indonesian military," PPIM executive chairman Jajat Burhanuddin told a media conference, as quoted by detik.com news portal.
"Another 16 percent say they can trust the police institution, and an equal 11 percent trust the People's Consultative Assembly and the House of Representatives. And only 8 percent of the respondents said they trust the political parties," he added.
The survey questioned 200 respondents between 16 and 70 years of age. Some 42 percent of them lived in the cities, and the remaining 58 percent in villages.
Jajat said the survey showed that religious factors played a more significant role than politics.
Prominent Muslim scholar Azyumardi Azra said the survey also pinpointed the fact that the state institution was weaker than religious ones. "Our state institution is on a declining trend."
He said the National Police's inability to handle the mass riots in 1998 was a symptom of this.
"The police did not have the capacity to deal with the riots, while politicians could not do anything to put an end to them," Azyumardi, former rector of the Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, said.
He suggested that Pancasila, the national ideology, needed to be revived.
"We do not need to change the ideology, but give Pancasila a greater role in solving the problems of the nation," he said, in reference to another aspect of the survey which revealed that Pancasila remains the preferred national ideology.
Jajat said the survey showed that after the fall of president Soeharto people still preferred Pancasila to Islamic sharia, despite the fact that over 80 percent of the country's 220 million people are Muslims.
"Only 22.8 percent of the respondents want Islamic sharia as the state's ideology... The much greater remaining percentage chose Pancasila," Jajat said.
He said respondents had put religion as the most important factor in determining the identity of the nation, with some 41.3 percent of them supporting the idea. Another 24.6 percent chose nationhood as the national identity, while the rest chose occupation, ethnicity, social status and political party membership as their identity.
The survey also showed that 63.9 percent of the respondents agreed on equal distribution of power between Jakarta and the regional administrations nationwide, another 22.8 percent wanted Jakarta to take control of most of the country's government affairs, another 8.3 percent opted for a federation system, 0.8 percent chose to separate from Indonesia and 14.1 percent abstained
Friday, May 04, 2007
Friday, April 20, 2007
NO MORE SILENCE Undermining Jamaah Islamiyah
Everyone everywhere should do something more strategic about undermining the theology of hatred and terror invented by Jama'ah Islamiyah and other like-minded organizations and individuals. The doctrine about hatred against Christians and the West is NOT Islamic. The wrong teachings of their leaders and their books they read certainly influence this misinterpretation of Islam and the use of force for the wrong reasons also should be ended in perpetuation such misinterpretation. There should be no more silent among the moderate, mainstream intellectuals and leaders; they and we must do something without hesitation; NO MORE SILENCE.
Report: (The Jakarta Post, April, 20, 2007)
Terror network Jemaah Islamiyah has new hit squad in Indonesia
SINGAPORE (AP): Southeast Asian terror network Jemaah Islamiyah has set up an assassination squad and made a target list that includes police, judges and prosecutors, Indonesia's anti-terror chief said in a newspaper report published Monday.
The hit squad is believed to have about 100 operatives who would target both locals and foreigners in Indonesia, Maj. Gen. Ansyaad Mbai told Singapore's Straits Times newspaper.
The report did not say if the new group would try to kill any people outside Indonesia.
He said the assassination plan was uncovered after a series of raids in Java last month that resulted in the detention of seven suspected members of the al-Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah.
The Straits Times said investigators also found charts mapping out the group's new structure, as well as a large arms cache that included M-16 rifles, ammunition, detonators and more than 70kilograms (154 pounds) of TNT explosives.
Ansyaad said the target list included the rector of a Christian university in Central Java and an official of the Central Java Attorney-General's Office.
"We also know from their propaganda that the West, the Christians, are their enemy. It is logical that they could target Christian priests," he was quoted as saying.
Jemaah Islamiyah is seeking to create an Islamic state across Southeast Asia. The network has been blamed for a string of deadly bombings in Indonesia - the world's most populous Muslim country - in the last five years. It is considered responsible for the Oct. 12, 2002, bombings on the Indonesian island of Bali that killed 202 people.(***)
Report: (The Jakarta Post, April, 20, 2007)
Terror network Jemaah Islamiyah has new hit squad in Indonesia
SINGAPORE (AP): Southeast Asian terror network Jemaah Islamiyah has set up an assassination squad and made a target list that includes police, judges and prosecutors, Indonesia's anti-terror chief said in a newspaper report published Monday.
The hit squad is believed to have about 100 operatives who would target both locals and foreigners in Indonesia, Maj. Gen. Ansyaad Mbai told Singapore's Straits Times newspaper.
The report did not say if the new group would try to kill any people outside Indonesia.
He said the assassination plan was uncovered after a series of raids in Java last month that resulted in the detention of seven suspected members of the al-Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah.
The Straits Times said investigators also found charts mapping out the group's new structure, as well as a large arms cache that included M-16 rifles, ammunition, detonators and more than 70kilograms (154 pounds) of TNT explosives.
Ansyaad said the target list included the rector of a Christian university in Central Java and an official of the Central Java Attorney-General's Office.
"We also know from their propaganda that the West, the Christians, are their enemy. It is logical that they could target Christian priests," he was quoted as saying.
Jemaah Islamiyah is seeking to create an Islamic state across Southeast Asia. The network has been blamed for a string of deadly bombings in Indonesia - the world's most populous Muslim country - in the last five years. It is considered responsible for the Oct. 12, 2002, bombings on the Indonesian island of Bali that killed 202 people.(***)
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Conference on Indonesia's Diversity and State Policy April/7 07
Ali talks about how Indonesia has become religiously diversed, how she should become to be so, how to manage diversity, how to maintain Pancasila as an open ideology, and how to promote a civic education that would cultivate tolerance and pluralism.
Neneng is a performer among others of mixed ethnicity, religion, and nationality. They performed SAMAN dance from Aceh. The dance of a thousand hands is a reflection of diversity itself. Art and performances constitute the fun and effective way of promoting diversity as an asset rather than a liability.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Islamic Enlightenment an Interview
Dear reader,
This is one of the most outstanding clerics in the Arab world today!
If you donot understand Arabic, you can see the English subtitles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0lut5DyQl8
This is one of the most outstanding clerics in the Arab world today!
If you donot understand Arabic, you can see the English subtitles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0lut5DyQl8
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Religion and Money
Dear readers,
The article below is very interesting. We have the kind of concern of financial accountability too in Islamic mosques, schools, ministry of religion, and charities. Another concern is how religiosity and money interacted in personal and commual lives. The relationship between religion and money is a fascinating research topic that should be pursued. My take at this point is that financial accountability is a sign of true religioisity.
Ali
Philanthropic Donations Come From Your Heart, but Where Do They End Up?
Ex-Money Manager Says 'Enough!' to Secretive Christian Ministry Spending
By GLENN RUPPEL and JOHN STOSSEL
ABC News. March 23, 2007 — - Anyone watching televangelists on television will hear plenty of pitches for money. Jan and Paul Crouch of Trinity Broadcasting say they need big bucks to keep their network on the air and to help the poor around the world.
Benny Hinn, of Benny Hinn Ministries, has made heartfelt pleas to help the people of Calcutta, while Rod Parsley of Breakthrough Ministries has asked for help to spread the gospel to the people of Nepal.
Christian ministries and charities promise to do all kinds of good things with your money, and that makes donors feel great about sending in their checks. The problem is, they can't always find out exactly how their donation is being spent.
A Life of Charity … and Luxury
The givers are very confident that they will. One parishioner told ABC News that "when I give to this church, I know that my money's being put to excellent use. Without one question." While her pastor, Fred Price of Ever Increasing Faith Ministries, does support inner city programs with donors' money, she's apparently not bothered when he also boasts that "I live in a 25-room mansion, I have my own $6 million yacht, I have my own private jet and I have my own helicopter and I have seven luxury automobiles."
At least he tells his parishioners about all this wealth, but many preachers don't advertise how well they live.
The popular Kenneth Copeland of Kenneth Copeland Ministries lives in a large mansion in Texas. He recently asked his audience to help him spread the gospel by giving him $20 million to buy a new jet. Copeland promised that the plane "will never, ever be used as long as it is in our care, for anything other than what is becoming to you, Lord Jesus."
Our ABC affiliate in Dallas, WFAA, took a closer look. Reporter Brett Shipp obtained flight records that revealed that the Copeland jet, on its way to an evangelical seminar in Australia last October, made a two-day layover in Maui. Then it was on to the Fiji islands for another stop.
After seven days in Australia, the Copelands headed to Honolulu for another three days of what they called "eating and rest."
Last December, amid other evangelical stops, the jet made the first of two trips to a Colorado airport, just a few miles away from Steamboat Springs Ski Resort.
And, finally, there was a flight to southwest Texas to a hunting ranch where the Copelands have bagged exotic game over the years. (Click here for the full WFAA story on Copeland.)
Spokesmen for Copeland and some of the other ministries we talked to pointed out that they comply with all IRS regulations.
Enter Rusty Leonard
But just complying with the law is not good enough, said one man, Rusty Leonard. He is a devout Christian who knows a lot about money. He runs a company called Stewardship Partners, which invests wealthy clients' money in companies that he believes have Christian-friendly values. Before that, Leonard spent a decade as a high-powered money manager for Templeton Investments.
When he quit, he was in charge of $3.5 billion. He walked away from a seven-figure salary because he felt called by God, and says, "You know, when you feel called to do something, you do it."
That calling was to look after donors' money and make sure it was spent properly. He says some people are being "hosed" because they just don't know what's being done with the cash they give.
Leonard and his wife, Carol, gave millions to Christian charities before they decided they needed to look deeper. He told us that "we've all been trained to not even think, to just give the money over and not ask questions and to just not be good stewards. And all the satisfaction we get is in the act of giving, not of making sure that actual good work gets done."
As a result, Leonard started up the research group Ministrywatch. They asked Christian ministries and charities to reveal their finances. At first it was tough going, since, he says, "nobody had ever held them to account from an independent perspective. So they were totally freaked out by it."
Many said no, others threatened to sue. Leonard wasn't intimidated. He says his attitude was "bring it on. And you know, frankly, they like to threaten that, but they don't actually like to do it. Because if they did it, they would raise the awareness of the whole problem to a higher level."
The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
While charities legally must report their finances, ministries are generally exempt. However, Leonard feels they have a moral responsibility to do so. As a result, Ministrywatch criticizes 28 Christian groups, including some of the most successful televangelists in America, all for having little or no financial transparency. (Click here to see the full list.)
"It's a huge red flag," Leonard says. "Nobody should donate to any of those ministries. There's no point in donating to a ministry that wants to take your money but not tell you a thing about how they're gonna spend that money. It doesn't mean that they're doing anything wrong, but it's a very high probability that something is wrong there." Leonard says the attitude of some charities is "trust us," but the problem, he adds, is that "I'm human, you're human. If I had no constraints on me, I'd probably do all kinds of stupid things."
The research Leonard and his staff does is available for anyone to view for free on Ministrywatch.com. There, the best groups are showcased as "Shining Lights." He points out that the vast majority of the 500 Christian charities and ministries that he lists -- such as the YMCA and the Salvation Army -- do a good job. They use donors' money efficiently and reveal where it goes.
A small but prominent number of groups receive "Donor Alerts." These are the cases where he has been able to review some financial information, and as a result, has serious concerns about how their money is spent. That list includes the Crouches and their Trinity Broadcasting Network -- the largest religious broadcaster in the world.
Ministrywatch revealed that Trinity Broadcasting sits on a $340 million cash hoard, and owns houses in an exclusive Orange County, Calif., community hidden behind very regal gates.
They control one mansion worth about $4 million, and an even bigger one -- over 10,000 square feet -- that's worth about $6 million. The Crouches also travel the world in a jet worth a reported $7 million.
Leonard criticizes the Crouch's lifestyle, noting that "we would expect that [in] most Christian ministries, the leadership should have some degree of sacrifice. You want to see that. Jesus lived a life of sacrifice."
"It's the Devil"
Paul Crouch, however, disagrees. In the past, he has fired back, charging that "these critics want us to be humble and poor like Jesus. … Let me tell you how subtle that is from Satan himself. If God's people are poor as Job's turkey, who's going to pay to send the gospel to the ends of the earth?"
Jan Crouch has expressed similar feelings, saying that "It's the devil, it's Satan. If he has said don't give, hey, you're listening to the wrong side."
In response, Leonard notes that "it's kind of hard to declare that you're living in a fine house as a good deed. That just seems like a selfish deed. They do some good work. But they could spend a whole lot more money if they sold the house and the car and the jet plane."
The Crouch's spokesman told us they have a long track record of financial integrity, including independent audits, and they claim Ministrywatch condemns them because they don't like their theology. Leonard admits he has theological differences -- his reviews include a critique in this area -- but says they don't affect his financial assessments and ratings.
Meanwhile, some of the battles Leonard fought with groups like this did sometimes strain his will. "It was tough, it was hard. And it really was upsetting. It was negative and I really didn't want to do it anymore, but then the Lord kind of called us in to say 'no, I put you in this spot for this very reason.'"
Fortunately for donors' sake, Leonard didn't give up. Today Ministrywatch.com gets about 4,000 hits a day, and he's now respected enough that charities actually come to him and ask to be listed. At the moment, there's a backlog of 500 groups that Leonard can't add due to his limited resources.
His growing influence is seen elsewhere: after Leonard criticized the Joyce Meyer Ministries, she opened up their financial records and sold off a group of million-dollar homes she and her family had been using. Leonard says, "I think they would claim at the ministry that they didn't quite respond to us, that they were doing this on their own. She moved in the right direction."
As for Leonard's finances -- after spending $2 million of his own money on Ministrywatch, he is poorer than he used to be, but that's OK, he says. "I've gone seven years without earning a salary now. So it's a whole different scenario, but I am more joyful and happy than I was before."
Copyright © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Feeling Bad about Iraq
Coming to the fifth year of the war and conflict in Iraq, the situation is no better off. I feel bad I am carrying out my daily activities when people, mostly Iraqi civilians, and thousand American and allied troops are suffering.
Why is it so hard for politicians to admit mistakes they made? Why is it so easy for them to make justifications of their weaknesses and losses? Why is it so difficult for different groups in Washington and in Iraq to find the best solutions? Why is it Iraqis and neighbors making the situation even worst with their suicide bombings? Are men and women today no better than the people in the classical and medieval ages when they waged against each other for the sake of self-dignification at the expense of peace and prosperity? Why is it for them unimaginable to stop the war, to rethink their ideological inclinations, to sit together and to find common grounds that will bring them all to the end of the bloody and truely destructive event of humankind of all times?
I am feeling very sorry about what has happening in Iraq; what I can do is write and speak up loudly; no more I can do. It is there in Washington, and in Iraq, that the heart of the decision is to be made: continuing or stopping the suffering.
Why is it so hard for politicians to admit mistakes they made? Why is it so easy for them to make justifications of their weaknesses and losses? Why is it so difficult for different groups in Washington and in Iraq to find the best solutions? Why is it Iraqis and neighbors making the situation even worst with their suicide bombings? Are men and women today no better than the people in the classical and medieval ages when they waged against each other for the sake of self-dignification at the expense of peace and prosperity? Why is it for them unimaginable to stop the war, to rethink their ideological inclinations, to sit together and to find common grounds that will bring them all to the end of the bloody and truely destructive event of humankind of all times?
I am feeling very sorry about what has happening in Iraq; what I can do is write and speak up loudly; no more I can do. It is there in Washington, and in Iraq, that the heart of the decision is to be made: continuing or stopping the suffering.
Monday, February 26, 2007
My JMBRAS Article Transmission of Islamic Knowledge in Kelantan
The titles of articles of the Journal of the Malaysian Branch of Royal Asiatic Society (JMBRAS) can be seen at
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Dissertation
I have been enjoying writing my dissertation since I have started in early 2005 . I am very excited doing this, although I get bored sometimes sitting in the front of my laptop, with my tiring eyes. So I have taken breaks, watching movies, relaxing on the beach, visiting bookstores, and so forth. I am happy Hawaii gives me everything.
This dissertation is both an obligation and opportunity to develop my ideas thouroughly, systematically, and brightly. My dissertation has come to a good shape now. The general topic was the transmission of Islamic knowledge and power relations in twentieth century Indonesia (South Sulawesi) and Malaysia (Kelantan). At this point, I wanted to limit the period to the colonial era (the Dutch, the British and the Japanese administration): how these administrations shaped Islamic knowledge. My main argument is that the relationship between imperialism and Islam was not always in contradiction; there were some interactions, ambivalences, indifferences, and collaborations. Although there were certainly resistances, these took place not simply because of colonialism as such, but because of discriminary policies and colonial failure of providing some of the promises such as religious freedom and non-interference in Islamic affairs. The other side of the argument is that Islam knowledge is both religious and historical. Power relations, not only of politics, but also of inter-religious interactions, shaped the Islamic institutions and knowledge. The fixity and change in part of what is considered to be "Islamic: knowledge should be understood contextually. I have some other points, but I will tell more about these later.
While doing this dissertation, I have also been doing other things: writting articles to newspapers, journals, doing radio interviews, teaching courses, making proposals and syllabi for future employment, doing job interviews and talks, welcoming and guiding guests, visitin and helping friends, and so on; I have enjoying doing all of these. I am happy that there are people who put trust on me and I don't want to lose such trust. Everyone needs trust. I have stopped writing articles for the Jakarta Post and journals for the last two months. I have always been tempted to write, expressing my ideas into articles everytime I read news or simply have ideas. I think so I exist, I write so I live. But I have reminded myself of my own priority this time, and of my appointment: to write my dissertation to my best, which definitely takes time, energy, and intellectual preparedness and brightness. I have promised to myself to produce a high-class research-based dissertation worth publishing in the United States for global readership. This should be my master piece, although I have planned to write many other articles and books afterwards. I will keep my promise. And wish me luck!
Hale Manoa, January 21, 2007
This dissertation is both an obligation and opportunity to develop my ideas thouroughly, systematically, and brightly. My dissertation has come to a good shape now. The general topic was the transmission of Islamic knowledge and power relations in twentieth century Indonesia (South Sulawesi) and Malaysia (Kelantan). At this point, I wanted to limit the period to the colonial era (the Dutch, the British and the Japanese administration): how these administrations shaped Islamic knowledge. My main argument is that the relationship between imperialism and Islam was not always in contradiction; there were some interactions, ambivalences, indifferences, and collaborations. Although there were certainly resistances, these took place not simply because of colonialism as such, but because of discriminary policies and colonial failure of providing some of the promises such as religious freedom and non-interference in Islamic affairs. The other side of the argument is that Islam knowledge is both religious and historical. Power relations, not only of politics, but also of inter-religious interactions, shaped the Islamic institutions and knowledge. The fixity and change in part of what is considered to be "Islamic: knowledge should be understood contextually. I have some other points, but I will tell more about these later.
While doing this dissertation, I have also been doing other things: writting articles to newspapers, journals, doing radio interviews, teaching courses, making proposals and syllabi for future employment, doing job interviews and talks, welcoming and guiding guests, visitin and helping friends, and so on; I have enjoying doing all of these. I am happy that there are people who put trust on me and I don't want to lose such trust. Everyone needs trust. I have stopped writing articles for the Jakarta Post and journals for the last two months. I have always been tempted to write, expressing my ideas into articles everytime I read news or simply have ideas. I think so I exist, I write so I live. But I have reminded myself of my own priority this time, and of my appointment: to write my dissertation to my best, which definitely takes time, energy, and intellectual preparedness and brightness. I have promised to myself to produce a high-class research-based dissertation worth publishing in the United States for global readership. This should be my master piece, although I have planned to write many other articles and books afterwards. I will keep my promise. And wish me luck!
Hale Manoa, January 21, 2007
Saturday, January 06, 2007
Rendezvous of Victory
"But the work of man is only just beginning and it remains to man to conquer all the violence entrenched in the recesses of his passion. And no race possesses the monopoly of beauty, of intelligence, of force, and there is a place for all at the rendezvous of victory." Aime Cesaire, "Cahier d'un Retour un Pays Natal", in James, "The Black Jacobins", 1938, in Edward Said, Culture and Imperialism, 1993, p.280)
Watch and listen to Edward Said's lecture "the Myth of the Clash of Civilizations"
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6705627964658699201&q=edward+said&hl=en
Watch and listen to Edward Said's lecture "the Myth of the Clash of Civilizations"
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6705627964658699201&q=edward+said&hl=en
Monday, January 01, 2007
New Year 2007
On December 30, 2006, we celebrated Idul Adha at a hall at Ala Moana Beach with Muslims in Hawaii. As usual: greetings, reciting the takbir, "collective" prayers, listening to the sermons of the imam, meal, and taking pictures. Idul Adha is both religious and secular, as in any other religious celebrations. Then in the afternoon, we attended the funeral ceremony (ta'ziah) of the death of American husband who left an Indonesian wife. It was to comfort the left wife especially and to be a reminder that everyone will definitely follow the fate.
In the evening, we attended another moment of importance, but it was a joyful one. The wedding ceremony of our friend Wilmar Salim (Indonesian) and Feryial (Pakistani), hosted by Kimbrell's family. It was wonderful evening in such a typically cozy house. We enjoyed the various types of food, South Asian music and songs, and stories, and a poetry recitation by Neneng. Everyone looked very happy.
On December 31, we celebrated the New Year Eve at Waikiki Beach with Indonesians. We barbecued, danced, and sang songs, and watched beautiful fireworks.
On January 1, Neneng, Nandar (in the picture, a Burmese student), and I were invited to a very special traditional Japanese lunch by Suzuki's family (Itsuko and Skip) at their beautiful home at Nuuanu, Pali. We had a great food and company. Excellent memory for us.
In the late afternoon and evening, we attended (and I was honored to lead) a spiritual conversion of Ross C. Smith (adopting a new name now Faris Haddad) and subsequently his engagement with our lovely sister Rohayati. This was a so meaningful moment for both of them, but also for us, Indonesian Muslims in Hawaii. It was well-organized and deeply touching program (involving Mas Ubaidillah, Safril, Mbak Rina, Mbak Iif, Nelly, and others). We shared so much joy and happiness. The program was followed by dinner and entertainment. The food was delicious, the music and songs were fun (especially Mbak Ida was able to come and sang nice songs for us - and we wish her full recovery). All were all so nice and the Malaysian movie we watched (entitled "Sepet") was wonderful. Many many coungratulations to Faris Haddad and Mbak Yati. From the bottom of our heart, we say we are happy for you; we love you; and we wish you all blessings and happiness!
Now, in the morning of January 2, I have to continue writing my dissertation. But before that, I wish you, the reader, all best wishes in the Year 2007. Every single moment is unique, different, special. What is never ending is to keep learning, learning, and learning, to keep enriching our life with meaningful ideas and actions. This is never ending, because we will never reach the ultimate truth. We are simply approaching the truths. And we are simply trying our own best to live a good and beautiful life.
January 2, 2007.
Now, in the morning of January 2, I have to continue writing my dissertation. But before that, I wish you, the reader, all best wishes in the Year 2007. Every single moment is unique, different, special. What is never ending is to keep learning, learning, and learning, to keep enriching our life with meaningful ideas and actions. This is never ending, because we will never reach the ultimate truth. We are simply approaching the truths. And we are simply trying our own best to live a good and beautiful life.
January 2, 2007.
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